Banana Whoopie Pies

There are a lot of really amazing things about coaching cross country. The kids. The camaraderie. The competition. The bananas. 

Oh, you didn't know about the bananas? 

Hang around any runner long enough and bananas will become a staple in your diet. Every week, our parents supply snacks and it is a good bet that there will be bananas somewhere in that cooler. They are great for kids to eat before a race, but when they are done every one wants something a little more substantial. This means there are going to be leftover bananas. As coach, I often end up with what is left over at the end of the day.

This year, I was on the ball and mashed up the leftovers and stuck them in the freezer. After I made banana bread. And banana pancakes.

And these.

The Boy loves, and I mean LOVES, whoopie pies. We make them quite a bit, so we have had to try all different kinds.

These turned out to be one of my favorites yet. We had them for a snack. We had them for dessert. We had them for breakfast. They are that good.

Cream together 1/2 cup each of butter, sugar and brown sugar.

 Beat in an egg.

In a separate bowl, mix together 1/2 cup sour cream and 1/2 cup mashed banana. Does ANY one else ever start singing the crazy monkey's mashed banana song from the Lion King? Just me? Really?

 Add half the sour cream mixture to the sugar mixture.

 Add in half of a mixture of 2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon each of salt, baking soda and baking powder. Alternate with the banana mixture.

 I use a large cookie dough scoop to make scoops all roughly the same size. I have seen whoopie pie cookie sheets. I must have one.

For the filling, mix together two packages of cream cheese with a cup of powdered sugar. Spoon about a tablespoon onto one cookie and sandwich with another.

So I was going along, happy as can be, making delicious cookie sandwiches, when I realized that I was going to run out of filling. Instead of making another batch, I added in a half a cup of peanut butter. This turned out to be a stroke of genius.

 Banana. Cream cheese. Peanut butter. Oh my.

These didn't last long. So I made more. Make a double batch right out of the gate. You will thank me.


Click here for Printable Recipe

Banana Whoopie Pies
2 Cups Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 Cup Mashed Ripe Banana
1/2 Cup Sour Cream
1/2 Cup Unsalted Butter, Softened
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Egg
1 teaspoon Vanilla
16 ounces Cream Cheese, softened
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. Combine banana and sour cream in another bowl. Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high speed, until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, beating until incorporated. Add banana mixture in 2 additions, alternating with flour mixture. Use a large cookie scoop to spoon batter into 1 1/4-inch rounds on baking sheets, spacing rounds 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 12 minutes. Let cool.
Beat cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla with a mixer on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Spoon 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture onto the flat sides of half the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies. Dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve immediately.

Cream Cheese Clouds

One of the desserts on the menu this month was cheesecake. As you may or may not know, cheesecake is kind of an involved recipe. It takes time. It takes energy. I had neither this week. So instead of actual cheesecake, I found a recipe from Robin Sue that I had saved back before Christmas. She added cherry pie filling to hers, but I didn't have any, so I substituted chocolate pudding.

Beat a block of cream cheese with powdered sugar and vanilla until it is super creamy.
Slowly add in a cup of cream. Cream. Not milk. Not half and half.
Because we are going for fluffy here, and truly, the only way to get there is by using real cream.
Beat this mixture until you get soft peaks form. Just like you would in whipped cream.
Spoon about a third of a cup of the mixture onto a cookie sheet lined with waxed paper. I was out of waxed paper, too, so I used aluminum foil.
Take a spoon and carve out a little space for the filling.

Freeze this for a couple hours and then fill with pudding. Or pie filling. Or fruit.
You know, I think anything with "cloud" in the name just has to be good, doesn't it? These are wonderful. I left them in the freezer overnight, and that made them really difficult to cut into at first, but they didn't take long to thaw out.

I really want to try these with lemon pudding. The Boy is upset we didn't have cherries, so that will be up the next round.

Click here for Printable Recipe

Cream Cheese Clouds

1- 8 ounce brick of cream cheese

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla

1 cup heavy cream

In a large mixing bowl using a hand held or stand mixer, mix together cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Slowly add cream and whip until mixture is whipped to a light and fluffy cloud. Line cookie trays with waxed paper and spoon about 1/3 cup sized mounds of the cream mixture on trays and makes a well in each mound using the back of a spoon. Freeze up to 2 hours on trays then remove to an airtight container to store in the freezer.

Butterscotch Cheesecake

I love cheesecake. And it loves me.

I have been on a cheesecake kick lately, I just can't seem to get enough of it. It's really not difficult to make, it just takes some time. My mom has actually made REAL New York Carnegie Deli Cheesecake before. It apparently IS fairly involved. I might have to get that recipe.

This butterscotch recipe intrigued me when I saw it in Taste of Home and it just kept calling to me. The Girl has not stopped requesting it.

Traditionally, you are supposed to bake your cheesecake in a springform pan. The sides of this pan can be loosened and removed so you have beautifully perfect slices of pie. I used to have one, but it is in the stratosphere with the rest of my house, and I never replaced it. I have been baking in a pie plate or a regular 9 x 13 pan with really good results, so I will probably stick with that for now.

Mix up a graham cracker crust. This recipe calls for brown sugar, but I apparently just started mixing up my old stand-by one :) Which ever kind of sugar you decide to use, add in the crushed graham crackers and melted butter.

Mix that well and press into your pie plate (or springform pan) (or 9 x 13) and set aside.
Whisk together the milks and INSTANT butterscotch pudding mix. We are going to let this sit for a few minutes so it just starts to set up.
Beat in 3 (count them, three) packages of room temperature cream cheese. Let your cream cheese set out for a few hours. This makes it so much easier to whip and you end up with a much creamier pie.
Add in 3 lightly beaten eggs. Mix on low until the eggs are just combined with the cheese mixture. We don't want to lose any of that fluffiness.
Pour into your graham cracker crust and bake at 325 for 60-75 minutes.
Let cool and place in the refrigerator overnight.
This is the hard part. The waiting. Knowing that you cannot have what you most desire...

Knowing that tomorrow, you are going to have to have this for breakfast because you can't stand it anymore...

But trust me on this one. Tomorrow, it will be infinitely better. It NEEDS that night time to blend those flavors.

Click here for Printable Recipe

Butterscotch Cheesecake

1-1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

3/4 cup cold 2% milk

1 package (3.4 ounces) instant butterscotch pudding mix

3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon Spice Island® Pure Vanilla Extract

3 eggs, lightly beaten

Place a greased 9-in. springform pan on a double thickness of heavy-duty foil (about 18 in. square). Securely wrap foil around pan. In a small bowl, combine cracker crumbs and sugar; stir in butter. Press onto the bottom of prepared pan. Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 325° for 10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

In a small bowl, whisk the milks and pudding mix for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in pudding and vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Pour over crust. Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan.

Bake at 325° for 65-75 minutes or until center is almost set and top appears dull. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer. Refrigerate overnight. Garnish with whipped cream and butterscotch candies if desired. Yield: 12 servings.

Blueberry Banana Cheese Pie

Nine years ago today, I became a mother. And so began my continual state of exhaustion, messy house and hugs and kisses.

And birthday parties.

My husband's family gets together for every birthday for cake and ice cream and Coors. There are nine grandkids, so add in everyone, and we have a family reunion about once a month. I am eternally grateful that my children's cousins are more like siblings.

As it works out this year, Jeff can't be here on The Girl's actual birthday, so we are having our get together on Saturday. Since she's old enough to know the difference, I didn't feel like we could just ignore the birthday rituals. So when Tina posted this pie, I knew this is what I had to make and save the cake for the weekend.

Prepare a package of Dream Whip with a half a cup of milk and a half teaspoon of vanilla. I had always heard of Dream Whip. I can remember seeing an ad for a huge, delicious looking chocolate pie. I always wanted my mom to try it, but for some reason she didn't seem to think it was necessary.

Whip this together just like you would whipping cream.
Until you get a nice thick mixture. Set this aside for just a minute.
In a separate bowl, cream together two blocks of cream cheese and a cup of sugar.
Then mix these to creams together.
Slice up a banana and layer it into the bottom of a graham cracker crust. I used a prepared one since we are working really hard to get The Girl's life wizard to grandmaster for her birthday and every second counts. But if you have extra time, you can make your own.
Add the cream mixture on top of the banana slices.
Then add a half a can of blueberry pie filling.
And top with a half carton of Cool-Whip.
After letting it chill in the refrigerator for a few hours, add the candles.
And dig in.
Then dig in again a little bit later when you hear it calling to you from the kitchen.

This was sooooo good. We had a hard time saving any for Jeff for when he got home. We will definitely be making this again. Probably next week for our back to school dinner. Then maybe again for the Jeff's birthday. And maybe with strawberry pie filling.

Click here for Printable Recipe

Blueberry Banana Cheese Pie

2 – 8oz pgs Philadelphia cream cheese, softened

1 - 1.3 oz packet dream whip (prepared according to package directions)

1 - cup granulated sugar

1 - 21 oz can blueberry pie filling

2 - bananas, sliced

2 - prepared graham cracker crusts

1 – 8oz container cool whip

1/2 - cup fresh blueberries for garnish

Prepare the dream whip according to packet directions and set aside. Cream the sugar and the cream cheese together until creamy and smooth. Add the prepared dream whip and mix until combined. Slice one banana for each pie and layer on the bottom of each graham cracker crust. Add cream cheese mixture on top of the bananas and spread evenly covering the bananas. Spread the blueberry pie filling on top of the cream cheese mixture. Spread the cool whip over the pie filling and garnish with fresh blueberries. Chill at least 3 hours and serve.

Recipe yields two pies, 16 servings. Each serving is worth 7 weight watchers points.

Oatmeal Raisin Cheesecake Crumble

It's raining. Again. The only good thing about this storm system is that it is not cold enough to be snow. Although my distance runners SWEAR they saw snowflakes while outside at practice tonight.

This kind of weather always makes me want to cook. Well, nap and then cook. This recipe came to me in an email today and looked just like the comfort food I was craving.

I'm going to warn you now. The picture looked like kind of a bar cookie. That is deceiving. This is NOT a snack so much as a dessert. Just so you know.

Press down a package of oatmeal raisin cookie dough into a 9 x 13 pan. You could mix up your own, but Pillsbury (where I got the recipe) makes a refrigerated dough.Sprinkle with chopped pecans and press these down into the dough. Bake for about 13 minutes so the crust gets nice and brown.
Meanwhile, beat 2 packages of cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk together.
Add in two eggs and teaspoon of vanilla. The sound of the mixer will attract The Boy.
"I like frosting"
Put him to work mixing together the flour and brown sugar.
You will definitely have to help cut in the half cup of butter.
But he can add in the cinnamon chips and chopped pecans.
Add in the raisins.Spread the cream cheese mixture over the crust.
Throw on the topping mixture.

Bake at 350 for another 30 minutes until it is set up. Let this cool for a couple hours so all the flavors have a chance to blend together. This is the kind of dessert that is better (sadly) the next day.
Your kitchen will smell like heaven as these are baking. Someone needs to make a candle that smells like this. There is a lot going on here. A little too much for me. I think I will make them again, but not put the raisins on the top. Or the pecans. One layer of nuts is plenty for me. I just really couldn't tell there was a cheesecake layer at all, and that is tragic.

Click here for Printable Recipe

Oatmeal Raisin Cheesecake Crumble

1	package (16 oz) Pillsbury® Big Deluxe™ refrigerated oatmeal raisin cookies (12 cookies)
2	cups Chopped Pecans
2	packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1	can (14 oz) Sweetened Condensed Milk
1	teaspoon vanilla
2	eggs
1	cup Flour
3/4	cup packed light brown sugar
1/2	cup cold Butter
3/4	cup cinnamon chips
1	cup raisins
1/2	cup old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats

Heat oven to 350°F. In bottom of ungreased 13x9-inch pan, press cookie dough rounds evenly for crust. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the pecans; press firmly into dough. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, in large bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add milk, vanilla and eggs; beat until well blended. On low speed, beat in 1/2 cup of the flour. Pour over crust; spread evenly.

In medium bowl, mix brown sugar and remaining 1/2 cup flour. Cut in butter, using pastry blender or fork, until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Stir in cinnamon chips, raisins, oats and remaining 1 cup pecans. Sprinkle over cheese mixture.

Bake 35 to 45 minutes longer or until set. Cool completely, about 2 hours. To serve, cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Store in refrigerator.